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BRONX, NY –Last night, Senator Jeff Klein (D-Bronx/Westchester) announced that he has secured $250,000 dollars in funding for Operation S.N.U.G. (guns spelled backwards), an initiative designed to reduce violence in communities in New York that experience disproportionately high rates of shootings and killings. Senator Klein made the announcement at the 49th Precinct’s National Night Out Against Crime and has committed to working with local officials and community leaders throughout the Bronx.

Senator Klein said, “Gang violence has devastated our neighborhoods in the Bronx, and has far too often resulted in the deaths of our young men and women. We have to take a comprehensive, aggressive approach to combat this. That’s why I’m proud to announce that I’ve secured $250,000 for the Bronx’s Operation S.N.U.G. program in order to drive the anti-gang violence movement in New York, providing a brighter for our families, and most importantly, our youth.”

Previous funding for Operation S.N.U.G. has been awarded to various communities with high cases of gang violence in New York such as Brooklyn, Queens, and Yonkers. This year will mark the first year that S.N.U.G. funding has been granted to the Bronx thanks to the advocacy of Senator Klein.

S.N.U.G. is a comprehensive response to gun violence that works with community based organizations and experts who specialize in outreach to high risk individuals education and job opportunities. Experts will be hired to keep the pulse of each community for the purpose of intervening in violence before it escalates.

Operation S.N.U.G uses a data driven model to determine what messaging would be most effective for each community. S.N.U.G. will also operate during hours when violence is most likely to occur, such as late nights and early mornings. The initiative is based on the successful “CeaseFire Chicago” program, whose model produced a 67% reduction in shootings its first year, and helped between 85-99% of high risk clients find jobs, drug treatment, and education. The annual murder rate in Chicago as of 2010 became the lowest it had ever been in 45 years, spurring a series of other successful programs across the nation in cities such as Baltimore, Kansas City, and New Orleans. By securing funding for S.N.U.G., the Bronx will be on the path to significant reductions of violence in its’ most vulnerable areas, enhancing the future safety and quality for our communities, neighborhoods, families, and youth.